Everything We Know About 'Pirates Of The Caribbean 5: Dead Men Tell No Tales'

Yep, just when you thought the beast was dead and the kraken laid to rest beneath the seas, here it comes to rear its head again above the waters. That's right, it's full steam ahead on the fifth installment in #Disney's popular #PiratesoftheCaribbean franchise with Pirates of the Caribbean 5: Dead Men Tell No Tales.

Pirates of the Caribbean 5 is set for release next year. It's been a long time in development; in the works over at Disney since way back in 2011, and yes Johnny #Depp is back as Captain Jack Sparrow. Read on for news, rumors and generally everything you need to know to get shipshape before the movie's release.

Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 News & Rumors

Updated 11/9/16: Pirates 5 Gets A Name Change

(Disney)

Though Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 has long been known as Dead Men Tell No Tales, it's getting a surprise name change for release in several countries. While it will still be known by the subtitle Dead Men Tell No Tales in the US, it will be renamed Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge in the UK, and The Revenge Of Salazar in France, Spain and Italy.

Pirates 5 Marks A Return To The Original Tone Of The Series

The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise went from strength to weaker, weak and finally the weakest with On Stranger Tides. But it looks like this next iteration — described as a "reboot," though still following the continuity timeline of the previous films — could be the one to breathe life back into the franchise.

This whole thing was just awkward (Disney)

After all, it was the breath of fresh air about the first film — Pirates of the Caribbean:The Curse of the Black Pearl (released 13 years ago now!) — that made it such a success, and it's looking like Dead Men Tell No Tales is aiming to capture that same element here.

The first film was kind of a runaway hit, with studio execs not expecting such an overwhelming critical and commercial success from the pirates genre, which hadn't performed well in decades. It was the campy humor with the supernatural twist and Johnny Depp's portrayal of the instantly iconic Captain Jack Sparrow — who has arguably one of the best character introductions in Hollywood cinema — that instantly captured the imaginations of audiences.

Kaya Scodelario, a newcomer to the franchise, spoke to Digital Spy about how Dead Men Tell No Tales is attempting to capture the same spirit that made Black Pearl such a success:

"['Pirates 5' does have] a lot more of the first movie, that's what they wanted to bring it back to. [The producers] want to take it back to the beginning again. They wanted it to have this epic journey, and for it to make sense, and for it to tie things up, and also lead to new storylines."

Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 Trailer

A new trailer has sailed onto our screens recently, teasing plot hints as it gave us our first look at some of the new characters from Dead Men Tell No Tales. Check it out below!

This teaser introduces Captain Salazar and the mysterious Henry — but who is he?

Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 Release Date

Believe it or not, it's been over five years since the last film in the franchise — the poorly received but still financially successful On Stranger Tides — was released. And the franchise is set to return next year, as Pirates Of The Caribbean 5:Dead Men Tell No Tales's release dateis May 26, 2017.

Anchors awwwaaaaay (Disney)

The movie was originally set to hit theaters in July 2017, but the Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 release date was moved up to May, marking six years and six days since the release of On Stranger Tides.

Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 Plot

The Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 plot involves Captain Jack Sparrow's quest for the legendary Trident of Poseidon, which will give him control over the entirety of the oceans.

Or just a jar of dirt (Disney)

However, Sparrow seeks the trident not for his own purposes, but in order to defend the seas from new character Captain Salazar (Javier Bardem). Salazar, after surviving the Devil's Triangle, returns with a ghostly pirate crew to claim vengeance upon Sparrow, who he blames for the death of his brother.

So far the whole thing sounds pretty close to the theme of the original, which is a very good thing. Returning to the roots of the franchise is definitely the best direction to go in right now, rather than trying to build upon the previous three films that have been collapsing like so many decks of cards.

However, Dead Men Tell No Tales will not completely ignore the Pirates canon, which is a good thing because it means we may see a resolution to the Davy Jones storyline with the introduction of the mysterious Henry. Speaking of Henry...

Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 Cast And Characters

The Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 cast & characters is looking pretty good right now — alongside much of the original cast returning there are some interesting newcomers too. Here's the central rundown:

Johnny Depp: Depp has portrayed Captain Jack Sparrow since the first movie. The good Captain is a lovably quirky, rum-guzzling pirate with a good heart and a witty quip for everything.

Kaya Scodelario: Newcomer Scodelario will portray Carina Smyth, an academically minded young woman intent on becoming an astronomer. She's also on the hunt for the Trident of Poseidon when she joins (willingly or not) Jack Sparrow's crew.

Orlando Bloom: Coming back after skipping the fourth installment, Bloom will reprise his role as good guy Will Turner, who will no doubt be aiding Jack on his quest, while possibly donning some fetching barnacles.

Brenton Thwaites: Speculation is rife when it comes to Thwaites's role as Henry. Could he be Henry Turner, son of Will and Elizabeth? Read what the young actor who plays him had to say about the character in the "Theories" section below.

Javier Bardem: The legendary Spanish actor will play the villain Captain Salazar, who, after surviving the Devil's Triangle, emerges with a ship full of ghostly sailors intent on seeking the Trident and his revenge.

Geoffrey Rush: Coming back into his one leg and really big hat, Rush will again play Captain Barbossa. Once the villain, now the ally, Barbossa's pirate cred is almost as legit as Jack's.

David Wenham: Fellow Lord of the Ringsalum Wenham will join the crew as Scarfield, although we still have no info on his character.

Kevin McNally: McNally's Gibbs is joining Jack's crew once more, likely as first mate on yet another crazy adventure the like of which only Jack could concoct.

(Disney)

Dead Men Tell No Tales is directed by Norwegian filmmaking partners Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg — popularly known as Roenberg — who also directed Marco Polo, Kon-Tiki and Max Manus: Man of War.

Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 Theories

(Disney)

Something that was noticeably missing from On Stranger Tides was the Will Turner/Elizabeth Swan dynamic, as neither Orlando Bloom nor Keira Knightley made an appearance due to reasons of casting and script. Though Knightley has said she's done with the franchise now Bloom is returning — and the reasons behind this could be a big factor in the success of the film.

One of the most popular Pirates of the Caribbean 5 theories is that Brenton Thwaites's character, Henry, is in fact the grown up son of Turner and Swan. Speaking of his role he said:

"It’s about a young man who wants to reconnect with his father, Davy Jones. There’s a curse that prevents him from doing that. I think it’s about how he goes around that and tries to fix it and he has to save his dad."

So it looks like Henry will be on his own quest — to seek a means to free his father Will Turner, now under the curse of Davy Jones, presumably going after the Trident for these means. With Bloom making a return to the franchise (hopefully with an impressive bit of barnacle/squid beard going on) it's shaping up to be a pretty exciting plot so far.

What Can We Expect From New Character Carina Smyth?

And looks like the franchise isn't going to suffer too greatly from the loss of Knightley as the female lead, Kaya Scodelario (of Skins fame), is stepping up to the mantle with a new character Carina Smyth, who sounds really interesting:

"[Carina] is an astronomer, and she is an academic. She's fighting for the right to study at university, because women couldn't at that time. So she's on her own journey - looking for the Trident of Poseidon - and she has a diary with clues, and she encounters Jack Sparrow along the way, and he messes everything up. As he does. And it's fun!"

With the addition of Scodelario as Carina, Bardem as Captain Salazar, Thwaites as Henry, and David Wenham as the (as yet unknown character) Scarfield, it's shaping up to be pretty exciting as Pirates of the Caribbean 5 sails into post-production.

For now though, we've got a while to wait until we see Captain Jack returning to our screens, so drink up me hearties, yo-ho!

Where To Watch Pirates Of The Caribbean 5 Online

(Disney)

Since the movie hasn't been released yet, you can't watch Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales online. However, as soon as some legal links become available we will post them here, so watch this space!

Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales is due to land May 26, 2017.